Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field

The Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field experience is a unique one, created by the greatest and most loyal fans in all of college baseball, combined with an enduring legacy of championships.

In February 2009, the LSU Baseball program moved into a new home, and all of the traditions, memories and excitement that make Tiger baseball truly special live on in the New Alex Box Stadium.

From LSU's first SEC title team in '39, to Bruce Baudier's perfect game, to Rich Cordani's game-winning home run against Southern Cal, to the regional championship victory laps of the 1990s, the original Alex Box Stadium was home from 1938-2008 to some of the greatest moments in all of college baseball history.

Now the LSU baseball legacy has moved 200 yards to the south into a state-of-the-art facility, designed to provide the resources necessary to sustain LSU's tradition of excellence while also accommodating in comfort the record-setting crowds that set Tiger Baseball apart from the rest of America.

In the New Box, the Tiger baseball team enjoys 6,000 additional square-feet of locker and meeting room space, new batting cages and all the amenities necessary to field a consistent winner.

A brand new home has opened for a grand old tradition ... LSU Baseball at Alex Box Stadium.

LSU has finished first in the nation in total attendance for 14 straight seasons. In 2009, the Tigers drew an NCAA-record 403,056 fans in the inaugural season of the New Alex Box Stadium.

LSU has been among the nation's attendance leaders for the past 21 seasons, finishing No. 5 in 1991, No. 6 in 1992, No. 4 in 1993, No. 3 in 1994 and 1995, and No. 1 from 1996-2011.

Over the past 28 seasons, the Tigers have attracted nearly 5.75 million fans to their home stadium. A total of 5,749,195patrons have watched the Tigers play at "The Box" from 1984 to 2011.

The original Alex Box Stadium was recognized both for its old-fashioned charm and for its modern renovations. Beginning in 1985, it was the site of four SEC tournaments, 18 NCAA regional tournaments, four NCAA super regional series and one ABCA Hall of Fame tournament.

Originally a 2,500-seat facility, the concrete and steel grandstand of the original Alex Box Stadium was completed in 1938. Funding came from the Works Progress Administration, a federally sponsored agency which constructed public

* The LSU record for actual attendance at Alex Box Stadium is 11,401, which was set June 8, 2013, in the NCAA Super Regional game 2 against Oklahoma (W, 11-1).** The regular-season record for actual attendance is 10,246 set April 27, 2013, against South Carolina (L, 4-2).

LSU's Record in the Alex Box Stadium (1984-2013)

Year

Games

W-L-T

Pct.

1984

31

23-8

.742

1985

34

31-3

.912

1986

43

38-5

.884

1987

35

30-5

.857

1988

33

27-6

.818

1989

36

31-5

.861

1990

37

32-5

.865

1991

43

33-10

.767

1992

38

30-8

.789

1993

43

34-8-1

.802

1994

35

28-7

.800

1995

36

28-8

.777

1996

39

32-7

.821

1997

40

36-4

.900

1998

35

32-3

.914

1999

38

27-11

.711

2000

39

28-11

.718

2001

37

27-10

.730

2002

36

28-8

.778

2003

39

30-8-1

.782

2004

36

27-9

.750

2005

36

23-13

.639

2006

37

25-12

.676

2007

35

20-14-1

.586

2008

42

32-9-1

.774

at Original Alex Box

933

732-197-4

.787

2009

42

33-9

.786

2010

38

30-8

.789

2011

37

28-9

.757

2012

44

35-9

.795

2013

43

39-4

.907

at New Alex Box

204

165-39

.809

Totals

1,093

862-227-4

.790

Total Attendance in Alex Box Stadium (1984-2013)

Year

Dates

Attendance

Average

1984

24

22,021

918

1985

25

40,746

1,630

1986

34

81,075

2,385

1987

27

46,084

1,707

1988

27

46,831

1,734

1989

33

65,781

1,993

1990

30

78,616

2,621

1991

37

113,832

3,077

1992

34

114,937

3,381

1993

39

137,306

3,521

1994

33

143,595

4,351

1995

36

148,995

4,139

1996

39

226,805

5,816

1997

39

252,864

6,484

1998

35

232,597

6,645

1999

38

271,888

7,154

2000

39

286,874

7,355

2001

37

276,622

7,476

2002

36

271,179

7,532

2003

39

291,676

7,478

2004

36

284,328

7,898

2005

36

270,300

7,508

2006

37

270,341

7,306

2007

35

256,537

7,329

2008

42

318,798

7,590

Original Alex Box

867

4,550,628

5,249

2009

42

403,056

9,596

2010

38

404,916

10,655

2011

37

390,595

10,556

2012

44

472,391

10,736

2013

43

473,298

11,006

New Alex Box

204

2,144,256

10,511

Grand Total

1,071

6,694,884

6,251

"Original" Alex Box Stadium (7,760)

The original Alex Box Stadium, home of the LSU Fighting Tigers from 1938-2008, has a storied history which spans several decades. Efforts to upgrade the stadium over the years made it comparable to that of many professional minor-league clubs. The 2008 season was the last for the Tigers in the 70-year-old facility, as LSU moved into the New Alex Box Stadium in 2009.

In 2008, the Tigers drew 318,798 fans to the original Alex Box Stadium as LSU finished first in the nation in total attendance for the 13th straight year.

Over the final 25 seasons in Alex Box Stadium, the Tigers attracted over four million fans to the historic facility. A total of 4,550,628 patrons watched the Tigers play at "The Box" from 1984 to 2008.

The stadium was recognized both for its old-fashioned charm and for its modern renovations. Beginning in 1985, it was the site of four SEC tournaments, 18 NCAA regional tournaments, four NCAA super regional series and one ABCA Hall of Fame tournament.

Originally a 2,500-seat facility, the concrete and steel grandstand of Alex Box Stadium was completed in 1938. Funding came from the Works Progress Administration, a federally sponsored agency which constructed public athletic facilities, among other such projects.

In its first two years, Alex Box Stadium was the site of spring training for the New York Giants. Such legendary baseball figures as Mel Ott, Carl Hubbell, Bill Terry and Dick Bartell trained at “The Box.”

LSU's baseball stadium was named in 1943 for Alex Box, an outfielder for the 1942 Tiger squad. Box was killed in 1943 while fighting in North Africa during World War II.

The largest paid attendance figure in the original stadium was 8,701 versus Mississippi State on May 11, 2008, the final regular-season game in stadium history. The largest actual attendance figure in the original Alex Box Stadium was 8,173 for the NCAA Super Regional championship game versus UC Irvine on June 9, 2008, the final LSU game played in the stadium.

Alex Box (1920-1943)

LSU's baseball stadium was named in 1943 for Alex Box, an outfielder for the 1942 Tiger squad. Box was killed in 1943 while fighting in North Africa during World War II.

Simeon Alexander Box was born August 5, 1920, in Quitman, Miss., and attended George S. Gardiner High School in Laurel, Miss. Box came to LSU in 1938 and majored in petroleum engineering. He played football and baseball, served as vice president of the junior class in engineering and was a member of several professional societies. He earned his petroleum engineering degree in 1942.

Box pursued his advanced ROTC studies in the engineering regiment. A handsome, popular figure on campus, he met and developed a close relationship with Earle Hubert, an attractive member of Delta Zeta sorority from Plaquemine, La. They had an understanding that she would complete her elementary education degree while he was serving in the military; then, they would later marry.

Tragically, the terrors of warfare changed those plans. After being commissioned in the U.S. Army, Box made short stops at camps in Florida and Pennsylvania and went on to England in August, 1942. He was posted to the First Infantry Division, called the "Big Red One" in North Africa. Lieutenant Box, a tank commander, displayed his heroism on November 9, 1942, when he risked his life in helping destroy six enemy machine gun nests and an artillery emplacement near Arcole, Algeria. His brave acts earned him the Distinguished Service Cross, the Army's second-highest decoration.

Only two months later, there was a fierce battle in Tunisia, and Box's tank was shredded by a German mine. He was killed instantly on February 19, 1943, at the age of 22. Brigadier General Theodore Roosevelt, wrote a letter of condolence to Box's mother, Mattie, saying "the deeds and death of your son have gone to make up the spiritual background that is this country."

Laurel, Miss., superintendent of schools R.H. Watkins eulogized Box as a “perfect example of an athlete, a Christian gentleman, a scholar and a soldier ... His beautiful life may be compared to a great piece of music which ends on a high note.”

On the LSU campus, there was a spontaneous movement that spring to commemorate his sacrifice in some tangible way. At its May 28, 1943 meeting, the LSU Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to name the baseball stadium for Box. That was considered such an unusual decision that the student newspaper, The Reveille, observed, "For the first time in the school's history, the service and memory of the military hero came to be esteemed so highly that a structure on the campus was named in his honor."

The Box family made a special presentation of Alex's personal memorabilia to LSU during the 1991 baseball season. The memorabilia, enclosed in a specially constructed glass case, is permanently housed in the LSU Athletics Hall of Fame and Museum.